Barrett-Jackson raises US$1.1 million for charity

by Chris Chase - April 30, 2008

Scottsdale, Arizona – The Barrett-Jackson Auction Company has announced that it helped to raise $1.1 million for various local and national charities during its sixth annual Collector Car Event in West Palm Beach, Florida in March (all prices U.S.). The money was raised through the sale of eighteen vehicles, crowd donations and the Opening Night Gala.

Barrett-Jackson, which routinely waives buyer and seller fees on charity vehicles, has helped to raise over $6.1 million for charity during the 2008 auction season.

“Over forty years ago, my father Russ Jackson and his partner Tom Barrett presented their first automotive event with one goal in mind, to raise money for the Scottsdale Library,” said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. “Today, I’m proud that our team has succeeded in continuing the Barrett-Jackson legacy of helping others. We experienced success again this year by exceeding the $1 million mark in charitable donations for the first time in the six-year history of the Palm Beach event. In Scottsdale, we helped to raise an amazing $5 million, bringing the total to over $6.1 million for this year as we gear up for our inaugural Las Vegas auction.”

The Palm Beach charity car sales were led by the KITT Ford Shelby Mustangs from NBC’s Knight Rider, which sold as a pair for $300,000 to benefit Ford’s Salute to Education program. The program, which awards college scholarships to high school seniors in South Florida, received an additional $264,000 from the sales of four other cars, including $135,000 for a 2008 Mustang Roush P-51A.

Other charity cars included $130,000 for a customized 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air dubbed “Project American Heroes”; $137,000 for the 2008 Eliminator Daytona boat; and eight cars from the television show The Sopranos which sold for a combined $83,800, including the 2003 Cadillac Escalade ESV driven by character Tony Soprano that brought $45,000.

As a child, Chris spent much of his time playing with toy cars in his parents’ basement; when his mother would tell him to go play outside, he made car sounds while riding his bicycle or dug roads for his toys in the flower garden. Now he gets to indulge his obsession playing with real cars that make their own cool noises, and gets paid for it.